Season 6 kept picking up steam as it rolled along, culminating in a remarkable trio of episodes. But... Show More »

Episode: "In Care Of" (613)

Season 6 kept picking up steam as it rolled along, culminating in a remarkable trio of episodes. But the finale was an outright showstopper highlighted by Don revealing the truth about his boyhood during the Hershey pitch to the final scene of Don taking Sally, Bobby and Gene to the whorehouse he grew up in.

The action-packed hour also included the beginning and end of Peggy and Ted's affair, Pete's outrage at Bob when his mother is lost at sea, Joan inviting Roger into their son's life, Megan walking out on Don when he backs out of moving to California, Betty's heartfelt phone call with Don discussing Sally's rebellious behavior, and the SC&P partners putting Don on a forced leave.

Pete Campbell's reckless behavior finally got the best of him when he ... Show More »

Episode: "The Collaborators" (603)

Pete Campbell's reckless behavior finally got the best of him when he has a fling with a neighbor whose abusive husband finds out and beats her up, sending her right over to Pete and Trudy's doorstep. Trudy acknowledges she hasn't been blind to Pete's affairs, but he went too far by fooling around so close to him. In one of Alison Brie's best scenes ever, Trudy kicks Pete out of their home and sets the terms on which they'll keep up the appearance of a happy marriage. « Less

James Wolk's guest arc as Bob Benson is sure to be remembered as one of Season 6's signature storylines, and the wild speculation his mysterious background ignited among fans proved the show still captures the pop culture zeitgeist. Some thought Bob was a secret psycho killer, while others were convinced he must be the secret son Don never knew he had. But the truth turned out to be a fusion of two other theories: Bob is a closeted gay man (with a crush on Pete Campbell, no less), who wormed his way into SCDP with a fake name and background a la Don Draper.

Pete deciding to keep Bob's secrets quiet (instead of trying to rat him out like Pete did with Don) was one of the best plot twists of the year. « Less

5/19

Worst: The mystery of Dawn Chambers:

Episode: "To Have and To Hold" (604)

For one brief moment it looked like the show might be opening the door t... Show More »

Episode: "To Have and To Hold" (604)

For one brief moment it looked like the show might be opening the door to a whole new world when "To Have and To Hold" followed Don's secretary, Dawn, out of the office and into her personal life. But just as quickly as it opened, that door closed. We don't blame the show for the difficulty of balancing so many characters (we don't see a whole lot of Ginsberg, Harry or Henry Francis either), but we're hoping to see even more from Dawn next season. « Less

6/19

Best: The merge:

Episode: "For Immediate Release" (606)

It was the episode that changed everything in Season 6: Don Draper and Ted Chaough decide ... Show More »

Episode: "For Immediate Release" (606)

It was the episode that changed everything in Season 6: Don Draper and Ted Chaough decide to align their separate firms in order to persuade Chevy they have what it takes to handle a top secret new car. And so SCDP merged with CGC, Peggy and Don became co-workers again and the long hunt for a new name began (before the partners finally settled on Sterling, Cooper & Partners in episode 610, "A Tale of Two Cities"). « Less

7/19

Best: The redemption of Pete Campbell:

Key episodes: Pretty much the entire season

This was a deliciously Pete heavy season, beginning with Trudy ... Show More »

Key episodes: Pretty much the entire season

This was a deliciously Pete heavy season, beginning with Trudy kicking him out and continuing through his disappointments at the office, loneliness at his apartment in the city and frustrations with his dementia-suffering mother.

Pete nearly orchestrated a move to take SCDP public, before Don and Ted agreed to the merge. He's seen Peggy's star rise, while his career has plateaued. And the whole Bob Benson thing really threw him.

But instead of lashing out in his usual slimy way, we've seen Pete start to grow. To realize he doesn't need to fight people to win, and to begin to deal with some of his deepest insecurities. All of a sudden it seems like Don Draper could learn a few things from Pete Campbell. « Less

Always great with a one-liner, we like it when Roger gets meaty storylines too. But he spent most of Season 6 oddly absent from the action. After a killer start in the season premiere's therapy sessions, Roger's biggest developments were helping get SCDP a shot at Chevy via his affair with a well-connected stewardess and awkwardly trying to get back into Joan's life and help out with the son they had together. We love what we got, we just wanted more. « Less

9/19

Best: Don and Betty reunited (and it feels so good):

Episode: "The Better Half" (609)

Don and Betty haven't shared much screen time since she... Show More »

Episode: "The Better Half" (609)

Don and Betty haven't shared much screen time since she left him at the end of Season 3, which made their intimate reunion at Bobby's summer camp all the more surprising. Betty invited Don back to her cabin, and into her bed, and the exes shared some stunningly frank pillow talk (Betty even expressed pity for Megan). « Less

A stray kiss here, a stolen glance there. Peggy and Ted's forbidden romance may have heated up faster if it wasn't for the merger and Don's subsequent rivalry with Ted. It finally came to a head in the season finale, when Ted and Peggy gave into their attraction ... and Ted immediately decided he needed to get far, far away. We don't know whether to commend Ted for sticking by his family, condemn him for giving Peggy false hope, or congratulate him for convincing Don to let him to go California. Whatever the answer, we're just glad Peggy got Don's office. « Less

11/19

Worst: Fifty Shades of Draper:

Episode: "Man with a Plan" (607)

Remember when Don decided to keep Sylvia in a hotel room as his personal sex slave... Show More »

Episode: "Man with a Plan" (607)

Remember when Don decided to keep Sylvia in a hotel room as his personal sex slave ("You exist in this room for my pleasure") and she kinda didn't mind, but then decided to break up with him after she had a vivid dream that he died? Yeah... that happened.

(Though it's worth noting that Linda Cardellini was exceptional in the break-up scene.) « Less

12/19

Best: Sally catches Don with his pants down:

Episode: "Favors" (611)

A moment as horrifying as any we've seen on "Mad Men" was also one of th... Show More »

Episode: "Favors" (611)

A moment as horrifying as any we've seen on "Mad Men" was also one of the year's most unforgettable twists. After Don tells Sylvia Rosen he's found a way to keep her son, Mitchell, out of Vietnam, she rekindles their affair. Unfortunately Sally's friend secretly slipped a love letter under Mitchell's door, and when Sally goes to retrieve it she winds up seeing her father and Mrs. Rosen in a seriously compromising position. Sally is traumatized, Don is humiliated, and the audience is riveted by how far Don has fallen. « Less

13/19

Best: Joan gets an account:

Episode: "A Tale of Two Cities" (610)

Joan's decision to accept last season's indecent proposal from Jaguar ... Show More »

Episode: "A Tale of Two Cities" (610)

Joan's decision to accept last season's indecent proposal from Jaguar executive Herb Rennet and subsequent rise to partnership kept resurfacing this season -- Don ultimately lost the firm Jaguar's business because he couldn't stand Herb, which understandably upset Joan -- but never more powerfully than when Joan decides to go after an Avon executive to woo their business.

Eager to prove she can land a client without using her body, Joan went around Ted and Pete to set up a meeting for herself, Peggy and Avon. That led to an awesome showdown with Peggy -- she felt Joan always belittled her professional ambitions, while Joan felt Peggy never respected her -- and ultimately a standout moment when Peggy helps extract Joan from getting reprimanded by Ted and Pete. « Less

14/19

Worst: Megan gets marginalized:

Key episodes: "The Doorway" (601/602); "The Collaborators" (603); "To Have and To Hold" (604); "For Immediate Rel...Show More »

The women Don Draper is involved with tend to be as important to the show as they are to him, so with Don spending much of the season cheating on Megan with Sylvia, the current Mrs. Draper found herself sitting on the sidelines much more than last season. She had a few major moments -- telling Sylvia about her miscarriage, fending off the sexual advances of her coworkers, hosting her visiting mother -- but more often than not wound up looking for various ways to play Don's worried wife. At least until the finale, when Don's flip-flop on moving to California pushed her over the edge and seemingly out the door... for good? « Less

15/19

Best: Grandma Ida:

Episode: "The Crash" (608)

While Don is in a drugged out daze at work, Megan is forced to leave Sally and Bobby on their own in... Show More »

Episode: "The Crash" (608)

While Don is in a drugged out daze at work, Megan is forced to leave Sally and Bobby on their own in the apartment. Later that night, Sally leaves her room to discover a friendly stranger who calls herself "Grandma Ida" (Davenia McFadden) rummaging through the living room and claiming to be a relative from Don's past. It seems ludicrous but an uncomfortable truth sinks in for Sally: She doesn't know anything about where her father came from. « Less

16/19

Best: Ken Cosgrove's fancy footwork:

Episode: "The Crash" (608)

In an episode full of surreal imagery, Ken Cosgrove's tap dancing takes ... Show More »

Episode: "The Crash" (608)

In an episode full of surreal imagery, Ken Cosgrove's tap dancing takes the top prize. Under-appreciated supporting player Aaron Staton delivers a rapid fire monologue while dancing up a storm in front of a stunned Don and Dawn. « Less

17/19

Best: Bobby has problems too:

Episode: "The Flood" (605)

Mason Vale Cotton isn't the first young actor to play Bobby (he's actually the ... Show More »

Episode: "The Flood" (605)

Mason Vale Cotton isn't the first young actor to play Bobby (he's actually the fourth), but he's the first to be asked to carry a whole storyline. He pulls it off wonderfully in "The Flood" and both Don -- and the audience -- see Bobby in a whole new light. « Less

18/19

Worst: Assassination aftermath:

Episode: "The Flood" (605)

Weaving historical events into the drama never feels like "Mad Men's" primary conc... Show More »

Episode: "The Flood" (605)

Weaving historical events into the drama never feels like "Mad Men's" primary concern, and that's a good thing. So it was unusually awkward when the aftermath of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. took up so much screen time to seemingly so little purpose in "The Flood."

The terrible news breaks 12 minutes into the episode and despite a few great moments (Pete borrowing Trudy's use of "shameful" in his argument with Harry, Don and Bobby's trip to the movies to see "Planet of the Apes," Ginsberg's father urging him to find a girlfriend, Don's monologue to Megan about his children) there's a lot of time devoted to characters watching TV and having no earthly idea what to do. A natural reaction, but not so great as drama.

And then there's Roger's oddball friend Randall Walsh (William Mapother), who seems to visit from another planet (or show) entirely. « Less

19/19

Best: 'Not great, Bob!':

Episode: "In Care Of" (613)

Would you believe Vincent Kartheiser has never been nominated for an Emmy? For this... Show More »

Episode: "In Care Of" (613)

Would you believe Vincent Kartheiser has never been nominated for an Emmy? For this season, he deserves a win.